Pricilla’s Article 

Great Expectations. 

It is summer time and we all have great expectations! For us in Minnesota we get about three months of summer. Every weekend is a holiday. Every town has its summer celebration from Whiz Bang Days, to Buffalo Days, to Wood Tick Days! There is a parade every Saturday and all kinds of carnivals, community events and activities. It is enough to make your clown wig spin!!!!! 

My challenge for all of us this summer is to make the most out of every opportunity. The perception we have of our lives and the events surrounding us is everything. What are you expectations as a performer?

Too many clowns put too high an expectation on themselves. And it is not just beginners who do this. But wait I am getting ahead of myself. 

The first time I clowned it was kind of an accident. I had done a little bit of theater in High School and college. I had come home from my freshman year of college and found out that my younger brother and sister, 10 year old twins, were going to be clowns in a local 4th of July parade. A seasoned clown was going to help anyone who wanted to do it by putting on the make-up. My mom needed me to take the twins to this guy's house. I thought about it and said, “Mom can anybody do this?” She said "Yes". Then I said, "Do you think I could do it?" I will never forget the look on her beautiful expressive face. She rolled her eyes, looked at me, and said not with a little sarcasm, "Yes I think you could do it." That was all I needed. 

I didn't know what to expect as a first time clown, so the experience was wonderful, magical and pure, for me that is. If my performance was all that for the audience it was only because my joy was contagious, not because I was good, that was 27 years ago. 

Sometimes we shoot ourselves in the foot because we are unrealistic. We expect too much out of ourselves or our audience. So we get to a performance, we have great expectations of what the show will be like, the number of kids, the size of the house, the show we will do. But then reality intervenes. The show, well the kids were a lot younger (or older!) than we expected. The Mom wants the party next to the pool or in a cramped living room. The school show ends up in the computer lab with tons of tables and chairs. You get the idea. 

One of my most memorable shows started out with 2 people in the audience (one of them was blind!).  On that tour our stage show was complete with magician, aerial act, juggler and clown. We appeared in beautiful theatres, for hundreds of people across the country. Sorry, I remember the Kansas City Opry House best. Oh there were 11 people by the end! 

In my 25 years as a professional clown I remember noses falling off, wigs sliding sideways, props being left at home, and make-up melting off in extreme heat. I remember performing for empty seats because the promoter didn't do his job on the Greatest Show on Earth! I remember clowning in the pouring rain in Montreal, and rivers of elephant pee running under the dressing room curtain. I remember these things fondly. At the time it wasn't so great. (My friends who have seen me have a melt down are laughing right now!) But I can look back and know I learned a lot from those experiences. Have a plan B! Life really isn't about how we execute plan A; it is how we shift gears to plan B. 

So how do you shift gears as a clown? How do we change our expectations for our audience, our performance, ourselves? Good question. Remember that your job is to spread joy -- Period. It is not to be the most talented, skilled, perfect make-up, costumed clown. It is about being the best clown you can be at that given moment. Shifting gears requires a shift in attitude. Drop the expectations you had, because 9 times out of 10 they were unrealistic for any number of reasons. You may have gotten misinformation; weather changed, someone on the other end dropped the ball, whatever.

But don't forget. “The show must go on.” Everyone deserves your best, every time.

Listen to this carefully. Your best may change at any given moment as the situation changes. Your best may mean you don't do a full show in a nursing home. It may mean you sit and listen to an elderly new friend tell you about the first time they saw a circus. 

So let's say there are only 3 kids at the party. Now what? Here is your chance to do something new. Can you drop your expectations in an instant? Take the three kids that are there, do your show; teach them a magic trick, shoot! Teach them your show!!! It will make a great photo opportunity! You could never do that with a room full of kids, but in this case you can! Mom will be impressed, kids will be thrilled, everybody wins. 

Shifting gears starts with expecting the unexpected. I had a high school teacher who drove me nuts. He said he never was disappointed because he didn't expect anything!" At the time I thought that was tragic. Now I know better. At first glance it may seem kind of harsh, but stick with me for a moment. I am not telling you not to have great expectations. What I am trying to say is change your expectations to expect the unexpected. Expect something new, expect to make changes in your routine, and expect to think on your feet. Expect a thrill when you try something new and it works. Expect your learning curve to increase when it goes wrong. 

Shifting gears takes practice, but you can do it. Number one is knowing your stress triggers. Be as prepared as you can be. Know what makes you have a melt down, and do everything you can to avoid it. But when it happens, be ready to diffuse the situation with laughter. As you are getting ready for your next event think of all the things that could go wrong and come up with some different solutions. Brainstorm about it at your next alley meeting. Ask people to share with you're their most creative moment when something went wrong. I think one of my most creative moments was making giant bunny ears for my magic routine out of hotel bath towels and the little sewing kit from the front desk. I laughed myself through the whole routine knowing they were really towels. Perspective. 

Yesterday I pulled a fresh baked raspberry pie out of the oven. On the way to the counter the cheap foil pie time folded and it hit the floor.

It looked like a CSI crime scene. I sat on the floor and laughed ‘til I cried.

It is all in perspective. I had nothing to do and plenty of time to clean it up. The pie was just for me so there was no problem. Perspective. 

I did a show at Disneyland with my nose only glued on the bottom half.

I had to hold my head at a really awkward angle to keep it on my face.

It was hilarious to watch. Perspective.

Patrons who came to the park daily told me it was their favorite show! Perspective. 

The beauty of live entertainment is "IT IS LIVE!” Wigs will fly off, kids will cry, props with fall apart! But we are clowns. Our purpose is to point out the absurdity of life, even if it happens to us in our own show! Summer is here and it is time for Great Expectations, expect the unexpected and have a great time. 

As you know if you read this newsletter regularly there is a group of folks with Great Expectations coming to Minnesota for Mooseburger Clown Arts Camp in a few days. Staff and students numbering in the thousands will descend upon our fair city!!! Well…ok. About 75 students and 15 staff, but if you looked into our offices you would really think it was in the thousands. We are a bee hive of activity getting all the details together. New ideas pop up here and there; boxes and boxes of supplies from eager staff arrive daily to my shop. Someone said to me yesterday, "You really do love this don't you!?" Yes I do! 

We did something new this year. I called and talked to each student and sent them a Pre-Camp workbook. It was so great to connect with each student personally and talk to them about their great expectations for camp and themselves. I love to hear people's stories about why they clown. Once camp begins it gets a bit hectic for me, so it is tough to talk to everyone. The stories of why and how people are coming to camp are amazing. There are a group of women who do not know each other coming to camp. They all have a very similar story. Their husbands have passed away. They are grieving. But they know that their loved ones wanted them to clown. So they are taking a leap of faith to come to camp and explore the world of laughter. I encouraged them that they were not alone. There would be time for laughter and for tears. Camp is a place to learn how to make other people laugh. But it is also a place for us to laugh and heal. Every year at camp I heal as well. 

So, did you miss the bus? You really wanted to come and join us, but things just didn't work out? I understand. If you want to come to camp next year, listen to this: my trusty Gal Friday Kate figured out if you start saving now it will only take 3 dollars a day to put your nest egg together with a little spending money to spare! We are working on a Moose Camp Savings plan to help you get to camp. More details to come.  For this month, however, scroll down to see the 2008 deal. 

There might be one or two of you who think it is too late. You live within driving distance and just need one more nudge. Consider yourself NUDGED! We can still take a few last minute campers! Do something crazy! Call now and we will get your registered for the greatest time of your life! Operators are standing by.

Well…ok, if you call after 5:00pm the answering machine is on. But leave all your information, phone number, address, email and credit card and we will get you signed up and your registration packet ready.

2008 Mooseburger Clown Arts Camp Updates 

Well, buckaroos, we’ve been hard at work, already making plans for next year’s Moose Camp.  It will take place in the same location, so mark your calendars now: 

July 29 – August 3, 2008 

Not only do we have the new dates to give you, we also are announcing two new staff members:

Greg & Karen DeSanto

These “Masters of the Pie Fight” are our special guest stars next year!  After working for Ringling, Big Apple Circus, Circus Sarasota, and the Circus World Museum, they knew that there was one more BIG stop they had to make: Mooseburger Clown Arts Camp! 
 
 

Is your wallet on a diet?

One of top two excuses we hear from clowns who decide not to sign up for Moose Camp is “I just can’t afford it right now.”  We understand that it is difficult to dig up a large wad of cash for travel, spending money, and everything else, especially at such short notice! 

Well, luckily for you, our chief statistician at Mooseburger Research Labs has calculated the following:

Moose Camp is 385 days away.

If you start putting away $3 a day now, you will have saved $1,155

This gives you $795 for Moose Camp and $360 for air fare

WOW!  

Three dollars a day. 

That’s your morning cup of coffee or your high-cholesterol stop at a McDonalds. 

Surely, your clowning is worth those small sacrifices!  How much does your clowning mean to you? 

Just think about it.  $3 a day = the time of your life! 
 

But what about the rest of you - Is the money NOT your biggest excuse?

What is YOUR reason for not signing up?

…oh, we’ve heard all the excuses before.

-- AND we’ve answered them all!

2008 Moose Camp Special Offer 
 

Early Bird Special  -  $100 OFF! 

If you register during the month of July for 2008 Moose Camp, we will take $100 off of your registration.  With down-payment of just $200, you can save your spot and save a lot of money. NOW is the time to register and start saving up!

Here are the terms and Conditions: 

1. Registration must be made between 7-1-07 and 7-31-07.

2. A minimum of $200 down-payment is required to hold your spot and receive the $100 discount.

3. This deal cannot be combined with any future coupons, offers, or scholarships.

4. This offer is not retroactive.

5. You must ask for this discount at the time of registration.  Use coupon code “EARLY BIRD” when you register.